The Epselix
by ShannonLPWebb
Summary: Amelia is an unknown 17 year old witch with a secret, who appears at the Salvatore residence. Damon and Stefan find out some interesting details about the young girl, but are suspicious by what she wants. She wants to speak to Elena, and then she says she will tell the brothers what and who she is. Could Amelia be telling the truth, or has she appeared for someone, to kill Elena?
1. A new arrival

She walked up to the house with a large bag clutched in her right hand, but stopped suddenly. She remembered the last four words her mother had ever said to her. _'Don't ever come back._' She then hesitated, but continued down the paving. She came to a huge wooden door with a golden brass knocker and paused.

"Should I, or should I not?" she continued to do what her hand had already began to do. She gripped onto the cold, brass handle, and lifted it up. As she began to knock, she felt a cold shiver down her spine. All of a sudden, she swiftly turned around; not knowing what had compelled her to do so. A man stood there, with deep blue daggers as eyes. It was Damon Salvatore.

"Why hello there... what brings you to my domain?" he quietly asked, squinting his eyes; looking at her up and down.

"Who are you?" she asked, stepping backwards, to eventually lean against the door very slightly.

"Shouldn't I be asking that question? ... Hmmm, English?" he replied, with a slight smirk upon his face. She paused for a couple of seconds, and took a deep breath,

"I'm Amelia. And yes, I am from England." She stated, raising her eyebrows and crossing her arms.

"Well, okay… _Amelia_ from_ England_, why are you at my door?" Damon asked, seeming confused yet sustained the smirk on his pale white face.

"…can you stand back a bit? Jeez, ever heard of personal space?" she answered, breathing more heavily, and gently pushing Damon's chest backwards a little.

"Ermm, excuse me if I'm making you feel uncomfortable, but it's you who is standing shiftily at my front door! So I'll ask again, who are you?" He said this louder with a hint of anger; his face was near hers, close enough for her to feel each of his icy breaths against her forehead.

"I told you. I'm Amelia." She said as she leant against the door as far back as she could, as if she thought she could move further backwards, through the door.

"Look, I'm not playing games with you _'Amelia'_, now you're going to tell me who you are and why you are here." He said this with such determination; he knew the answer would disperse from her mouth, that is, if she was human.

"No use attempting to compel me. It won't work." She replied, sounding arrogant. He began to seem angrier, but then calmed and asked:

"…are you a vampire?" he said, standing back and scrunching his eyebrows, to portray confusion. She hesitated for a moment then replied:

"…yes. I am. And the reason why I'm here is because…Elena."

Damon looked surprised and shocked at the same time; I mean, this random girl knew the name of his girlfriend and was a vampire also. Damon opened the door and allowed the girl in. He walked over to the small table and poured himself a glass of bourbon. The girl walked over to the centre of the room, placed her bag down on the floor and looked all around her. The room was traditional and dark, with only sunlight partially shining through the windows.

"So let's cut to the chase. What do you know about Elena?" Damon spoke, drinking the last of his bourbon, then looked at her travel bag.

"I know she's a vampire.' She began, Damon looked up towards the girl surprised, "…I know that she is also a doppelganger. I know that she is dating a guy named Damon…"

"That would be me." Damon cut in, pouring himself yet another glass.

"…oh, so you're the illustrious Damon Salvatore." She replied, looking Damon up and down, as he did to her when she had first appeared.

"Illustrious? What have you heard about me?" He inquisitively asked, suspiciously.

"…Hmmm, that you were the guy who never got the girl, until one day, Elena was brought back to life after a car accident caused by the one and only Rebekkah Mikaelson. Everybody thought she was dead, until Doctor Fell had revealed how she previously saved Elena from a brain haemorrhage using your blood which she had been using to save various peoples' lives. Then, we all know how the story continued… basically Elena drowned to death, came back to life with your blood in her system, she was sired to you, and then she revealed she truly loved you, and now you're living happily ever after. Only no. Because you and Elena are going against fate, so the fates are attempting to break you guys up and fulfil the prophecy of the doppelgangers… anddd we're finished. Anything else?" She finally sat down and took a deep breath, only Damon wasn't happy that this stranger knew everything about his girlfriend and himself. He ran and grabbed her against the wall by her neck and said:

"How do you know so much? Are you working for Klaus?" Damon shouted viciously, his eyes now red with anger, veins flowing from his eyes downwards towards his cheeks.

"Whh... ? Klaus… what… no… let… go…of…of… me. NOW!" As she choked continuously, she pushed Damon away aggressively, and powerfully slammed his arms against the wall, denting it in the process.

"What are you playing at Damon!? You don't even know me, and you're pulling stunts like that?" She shouted in his face, breathing heavily.

"What… how are you this strong? What you must be like 16?" Damon replied, attempting to get loose.

"…17 actually." She calmingly said, then gave a fake smile, "...now, if you promise to calm yourself, I will explain everything, okay? I'm on your side; I'm here to help Elena."

"My side? Wait, help Elena with what? What can you possibly do? Look at you, you're like a baby compared to me." Damon sarcastically stated, almost laughing. She slammed his arms against the wall again, and powerfully pushed her right knee into his stomach. Damon gasped and groaned loudly.

"What were saying?" Amelia smirked, "...Look. I said I'd explain everything to you if you calmed down. Now keep quiet, and listen to me. Alright?" She stated. Damon took a few seconds to catch his breath, then nodded in agreement. She released his arms gently, then ushered him to take a seat. Damon held his stomach in pain, then composed himself and sat down.

"…look. Let's start again. Hello, I'm Amelia." She said, holding her hand out for Damon to shake. At first he was hesitant, but didn't want to go back on his agreement to co-operate with Amelia. He held out his hand, and they shook.

"…Amelia what?" He began, quietly.

"Just Amelia." She replied smiling, sitting next to him.

"Damon Salvatore." They pulled their hands away, and Amelia began to tell him why she was at his residence.

"I lied... well just a little...well I didn't'...well I kind of did…" she began,

"Spit it our girl." Damon interrupted,

Amelia continued: "…I am a vampire… but also a werewolf…"

"…you're a hybrid…" Damon again interrupted,

"…I'm not finished…" Amelia sharply snapped, dropping her head in a shameful manner.

"What do you mean?" Damon questioned, worryingly.

"…not only am I a vampire, a werewolf… I'm also a witch." She stated, seriously.

"…That's impossible! That can't happen. That would be an inba…"

"…an imbalance of nature. I know. But it's true; I'm like, a trybrid or something…" Amelia continued on.

"Prove it." Damon said, quietly. Amelia then stood up and began saying a spell:

"Optium, findale, hinder, epsole, trebum, optium, findale, hinder, epsole, trebum…" she chanted, as the room began to blow with wind and paper began to fly across the room, surrounding Damon's head. He was shocked. He stood up and looked up at the flying paper above his head. He didn't know why, but he began to smile; the wind blowing through his hair, making him shiver all over. Amelia stopped her chant and sighed heavily.

"Believe me now?" She asked, sitting back down onto the sofa.

"…I still don't understand how it's possible. How can you be a witch, werewolf and vampire? It's never happened before, well not that I know of. I've never met a hybrid with powers." Damon stated, looking rather shocked, still attempting to process this new information and the girl herself.

"Look. Right now, it doesn't matter what I am. I'm here to see Elena…" As Amelia said this, the door swung open. Stefan Salvatore stood there, and tilted his head to the right hand side.

"What's going on in here?" He asked viewing the piles of paper laid out around the room. He circled the room with his eyes, until they were drawn to Amelia, who had stood up quickly due to the shock of him entering the room. Stefan stared at her continuously, then tilted his head yet again and said:

"And who's this?" he said this with a suspicious look on his face, eyebrows lowered and arms now folded. He stood tally, shoulders were back and broad.

"Stefan Salvatore, brother of Damon Salvatore. Ex lover…. Sorry… of Elena Gilbert." Amelia replied with, smiling but then saw Stefan lower his head, seeming upset. "Sorry…" she finished. Stefan took a deep breath and sighed, then looked confusingly at Damon.

"…Yeah, she kind of knows everything. She's like a clairvoyant…" Damon interrupted, producing a fake smile towards Amelia, she responded with raised eyebrows.

"How do you know so much then…" Stefan ushered Amelia to reveal her name.

"…Amelia. And I know things because I am a witch." She revealed.

"…and a vampire and a werewolf…" Damon added, looking at Stefan, "…where have you been anyway?" Damon asked, suspiciously.

"…doesn't matter." Stefan then turned to Amelia, "…what do you mean you're a witch, vampire and werewolf?" then moved closer to her.

"She won't say…" Damon began.

"…Not until I see Elena." Amelia finished. Both brothers looked swiftly at each other, and then turned to Amelia in sync.

Nobody spoke for at least a minute…until Amelia broke the daunting silence.

"Look! I know both of you do not trust me because you do not know me, but I am a trustworthy person, and I am being honest when I say I will tell you everything once I've seen and spoken to Elena. Okay?" Amelia stated, more angrily. She looked a Damon first, then Stefan who looked at her, and sighed.

"Damon. Ring Elena." he said this quietly and tiresomely.

"Wait what? I'm not being funny but I don't want to put my girlfriend's life in danger, if _Amelia_ is some hybrid witch girl who has come to kill her!" Damon angrily replied.

"For god sake…" Amelia jeered, looking annoyed and more impatient now.

"Damon, if she was planning something, she would have gone straight to find Elena by now, why would she stop here for so long first?" Stefan sighed, annoyed.

"Exactly! Why did you come here?" Damon asked Amelia, moving closer to her, as if he was about to hit her. Stefan put his arm in front of Damon, as if he was creating a barrier for Amelia.

"What are you doing?" Damon whispered.

"You're not going to hurt her. She may have important information, for all we know. So no, you're not going to touch her, okay?" Stefan quietly angered.

"Brother, I wouldn't think that you're stronger than me if I were you. I may have moved on from my dark days, but I'm still Damon, I'm still your big brother, who could punch you until next Tuesday." Damon smiled, sarcastically into Stefan's face. Amelia just stood there, looking bewildered.

"Oh god. You guys are stupid. I'm not here to _hurt_ Elena; I'm here to bloody protect her! I'm her protector!" Amelia said, pulling the two men apart, easily.

"Wow, you're strong." Stefan quietly said, looking confused once again.

"Yes we've already established this when she SLAMMED ME AGAINST THE WALL!" Damon said this loudly, widening his eyes, his head closely towards Amelia's again.

"Look. Just bring me Elena, or I'll have to go get her myself." Amelia threateningly said, moving away from the brothers, and walking towards the corridor to the stairs.

"Woah, woah, woah…is that a threat?" Damon began, as Amelia walked away.

"Where are you going?" Stefan asked, speaking loudly across the room.

"I'm going to look for a room." She stated as she picked up her travel bag and walked up the stairs.

"Woah, woah, woah, you are not staying here Amelia! This is a hybrid free-zone." Damon shouted after Amelia.

"It's no use, she has already gone." Stefan said as he walked over to the table and poured himself a glass of bourbon, Damon followed with his empty glass and Stefan also poured him a glass.

"Look, I know she could be anybody. But come on, how old is she? She looks like she's just looking for an old friend. May be she knows Elena, maybe Elena used to baby-sit her or something?" Stefan said drinking his bourbon.

"…baby-sit? Brother, that girl looks as shifty as the day Britney said she was having her hair cut!" Damon stated.

"That literally makes no sense. At the end of the day, Amelia is here, we don't know what she wants, but we will find out, okay? We'll get to the bottom of this, but right now, we need to keep her close to us as possible." Stefan quietly argued.

"Well if anything happens to Elena… it's on your head brother." Damon affirmed, slamming his glass onto the table and smashing it into millions of transparent shards.


	2. The Last Hybrid

Stefan and Damon waited in the living room for Elena to arrive. Damon had rang her and told her it was urgent.

"Like I said, if that girl wants to kill Elena, it's on your head." Damon claimed, as he repeatedly poured himself glasses of bourbon.

"Nobody said anything about 'killing' Damon, you're just paranoid. And enough with that, you're drinking us dry!" Stefan exclaimed, snatching the bottle of bourbon out of his brother's hand.

"Oh, so you really want to do this do you brother?" Damon remarked, with a scowl upon his face, snatching the bourbon back.

"Oh Damon, Damon, Damon. Always the one who threatens, never the one who follows through…" Stefan began, smirking, clasping his hands together.

"Erm, excuse me, you've just reversed the roles. You're the one who usually threatens and can't follow through little brother." Damon replied, with wide eyes. Amelia entered the room.

"Can I not leave you guys for a second, without you both quarrelling?" Amelia interrupted the tension between the brothers. Stefan looked over at Amelia, who had changed into a floral dress.

"I see you've changed?" Stefan asked, gazing at Amelia with his blue-green eyes.

"Oh, you've noticed. I fancied a new change of clothes, since I am in sunny Mystic Falls. I like the flowers; they remind me of England in the spring. We had a field of flowers and apple trees and…" Amelia began exclaiming happily.

"…Are you kidding me? Stefan stop looking at the _girl _and let's get back to business, shall we? Any other day I would've said 'yeah, go for it, you see me with Elena all the time, why don't you find somebody new?' But today, no, okay?" Damon interrupted. Amelia was embarrassed but then scowled at Damon and stated:

"Yes, we should. Anyway I was just saying that America is a completely different place to England...Damon, is Elena on her way?" Amelia questioned, looking towards the front door.

"Yes she is. I'm warning you though, if anything happens to…" Damon began, angrily.

"Yes, whatever you say Damon. Like I said, nothing will happen. I'm British; we never go back on our words." Amelia finished, holding her right hand across her chest, in a pledge like manner.

"Now I know you're lying! Do you know how many British liars we've met over the past few years? Promised us things, and then gone back on their words!" Damon shouted, then turned to Stefan, "…we're not letting a Klaus-Elijah moment happen again. Not this time." Damon quietly stated, "…Elena can't be put through that again."

"Wait. Did you say Klaus?" Amelia began. Both Damon and Stefan turned to Amelia, until the door opened, and then entered Elena.

"Damon, what is it you…" Elena started to ask. She noticed Amelia standing in between the two brothers, and walked slowly towards them.

"Elena Gilbert." Amelia whispered.

"Damon, Stefan, what's going on?" Elena asked, confused. She continued to slowly walk over to the three, when she felt a strange feeling run through her veins. "W…who are you?" she continued, shaking off the weird feeling inside of her.

"We've been attempting to ask her the same question. She said she wouldn't tell us until she spoke to you first." Damon answered, looking suspiciously again at Amelia, as if she was about to dagger a stake through her heart. Both Stefan and Damon were on their guard, both did not know whether Amelia was to be trusted or not; they did not know what she was going to do next. Elena stood backwards, and traced Amelia with her eyes.

"Who are you?" Elena repeated, apprehensively.

"…I'm Amelia. I have waited 7 years to meet you. And finally I get to see you in person." Amelia grinned, looking like she had seen her idol. Stefan and Damon both turned to one another, and pulled a 'What the hell?' look.

"Wait, you've waited 7 years to see me? Why?" Elena gasped, staying in the same position, not wanting to move.

"…Because I wasn't allowed. I was told that I must wait till I turned 17 to meet you…" Amelia replied, happily.

"Okay, now you're being creepy…" Damon interrupted.

"Damon, shh, what do you mean 'I was told', told by who?" Elena asked, worried.

"…my dead grandmother." Amelia replied, quietly, bowing her head, as if in disgrace.

"Okay, now you've gone to Looney town. And I actually thought you were going to say something smart. You fooled me." Damon interrupted once again, moving Elena away back from Amelia.

"Damon, don't…" Elena whispered, as she gently pushed Damon off of her arm, "…you see ghosts?" Elena asked.

"Look, all I can say is that my grandmother brought me to you for a reason. She told me few witches are protectors. They have someone who they must always risk their lives to protect. I am your protector…" Amelia began.

"No offence _Amelia, _but you're a decade too late! Elena needed protection a longgg time ago; I mean her parents died, her aunt died, her brother died a couple times, luckily another witch came to his rescue, she has been in a drowning situation twice, died twice, first time came back a human, second time came back a vampire, so again, no offence, but perhaps you haven't been doing your job properly." Damon interrupted once more, sarcastically smiling widely. Elena looked a little hurt that Damon was bringing up the wounding past. Amelia on the other hand just rolled her eyes and seemed careless of Damon's behaviour.

"Damon. Stop that. Let her speak." Stefan replied, annoyed with Damon's ill-manners.

"Excuse me brother if I don't believe this crap. What? Don't tell me you believe it?" Damon asked, laughing. Amelia turned to face Damon, who then seemed frightened of what she was going to say next.

"I have no reason to lie, Damon Salvatore. I'm not like you, I don't need to lie to get what I want and to cover up the fact that you know that you are a bane in Elena's life, and you are only leading her to her death." Amelia blurted, she turned back towards Elena. "…my role in life is to make sure you are safe, few witches have the privilege…and burden at times, to protect another human…"

"…but I'm not human, I'm a vampire." Elena began.

"Yes and so am I. I'm a hybrid witch. That's why our situation is inimitable!" Amelia exclaimed; Elena looked bewildered.

"Wait you're a hybrid, and a witch. How is that possible?" Elena asked. Stefan looked at Amelia, who had paused suddenly.

"We've asked the same thing, she doesn't know the answer." Stefan replied, and then sighed.

"…I was born into a witching family, but I also had the werewolf gene." Amelia stated, sitting down. By this time, Damon had retreated to his table of bourbon, and Elena was sustained in the same position as she had always been in. Stefan sat opposite Amelia, interested in finding out what she had to say. Elena followed and sat beside Stefan.

"So, how come you had the werewolf gene in the first place?" Stefan asked. Damon looked towards Stefan, and saw that Elena was sitting beside him. This shook him a little.

"The bigger question is how did Klaus manage to turn you, and why did he leave you alive?" Damon stated as he walked over towards the conversation, and sat next to Elena on the edge of the arm of the chair.

"That's two questions. Besides, allow me to answer Stefan's question first." Amelia said, copying Damon's sarcastic smile. "My mother was a witch, I remember her practising magic. When I was younger, around 4 years old, I used to sit and watch her move a feather in the air, or light 20 candles at once. It was magnificent." Amelia claimed, reminiscing.

"What about your dad?" Elena said, smiling at Amelia.

"Hmm. My father, well, from what I can remember he was a physically strong man with brown hair. That's pretty much all I can remember. Oh, I have this though." Amelia touched her neck and revealed a tooth pendant. "…Apparently it's the tooth of my father. When he first turned, he got into a spot of trouble and lost a tooth. He found it the morning after, put it on a chain. And long story short, it was given to me by him." Amelia continued.

"That's disgusting." Damon added.

"Damon!" Elena shrieked, hitting him across the stomach, "…sorry about Damon, he's a bit…"

"…Rude, pretentious, conceited, shallow, pompous, unintelligent, egotistical … and I got that only from our first meeting Damon…however, you are pretty cute, in a scruffy, shaggy dog kind of way." Amelia interrupted, jokingly winking at Damon. Elena laughed, whilst Damon blushed and went back over to his bourbon table. "Stefan on the other hand…" Amelia began, gazing towards Stefan.

"…Errm, so, how did you become a vampire too?" Stefan quickly asked, before Amelia could say anything about him

"…well Stefan. That's a completely different story. I grew up mainly in London with my so-called mother and father…" Amelia claimed.

"Wait, you mean the witch and the werewolf? They were together?" Elena intervened.

"Don't be stupid, of course they weren't. If anyone from the witch family found out about my mother having offspring with a werewolf, she'd probably be stoned to death! And me too!" Amelia shockingly remarked, "…what I mean to say is, that I was sent to England from America when I was 6 years old. I remember it as clear as day. I was living with my mother, step father and my sister until my mother found out my birth father was planning to take me away with him and his pack. Mother never told me the real truth why he wanted to take me away; I mean he never bothered with me before. The only thing he has ever given me is this stupid pendant...anyway, I found out later on in life from my adoptive mother that I was a werewolf and that my father wanted to ensure I broke the curse, and became a proper werewolf…" Amelia told the story, seeming upset.

"Are you telling us, that your own father wanted his 6 year old to break the curse?" Damon exclaimed, confused. He moved back over to the arm of the chair, and sat down.

"Yes." Amelia mumbled, "…he wanted me to kill a person, so that he could take me and teach me how to be a good werewolf, how to kill vampires, like a true hunting werewolf."

"That's… horrible. He sounds like an ass." Elena replied, reaching out for Amelia's hand for reassurance. Amelia held her hand, and became tearful.

"After my mother had found out that information, she sent me to England to live with her witch friend Elise and her husband for 10 years…"Amelia quietly cried.

"Your adoptive parents." Stefan answered quietly.

"Yes. Problem was that Elise detested vampires and werewolves, so I was something she wanted to spell away… but she couldn't, because she had promised my mother she would keep me safe from my father, and would prevent me from breaking the curse." Amelia explained, she then wiped her eyes, and took a deep breath.

"What happened next?" Elena asked, interested.

"Elise promise she'd protect me from my father… but she never said she'd protect me from Klaus…."Amelia began.

"Wait Klaus?" Damon interrupted, "…that's why you repeated his name earlier when I had mentioned him." He finished, sitting upwards.

"Did Klaus turn you into a vampire?" Stefan asked, delicately.

"No Stefan, not at first. Klaus first attempted to befriend me, asked me whether I had broken the curse. Of course I answered no, and walked away believing him to be a psycho. But then… he told me about himself and how he was a werewolf and that he would help be what I was born to be. At first I believed he was talking gibberish, but then he told me his whole story about him being hated by his parents, and being the only child in his family who was different to the rest… I mean, I was a 16 year old girl who had been sent to live with the adopted parents from hell, not allowed to make any contact to the family who had disowned me. I couldn't ask them why they had done what they had done, why couldn't they protect me, why did they have to leave me… these were the questions which ran through my head, every single moment of every single day since I understood what my life meant. Klaus was kind and understanding. He could relate. He was a friend." Amelia exclaimed.

"Yeah, he tends to worm his way through like that." Damon replied, drinking another glass of bourbon. Stefan glanced at Damon angrily, "…what? Look at Caroline…them two in the woods?_ 'whistle'_, I mean Klaus killed her ex' mum, but still she went off with him for play time..." Damon snarled, as Elena, Stefan and Amelia gave him a disregarding look, "…Like I said, he worms his way in…sometimes in more ways then one…" Damon finished, chuckling with his filled glass. Elena shook her head in disgust, followed by Amelia sighing loudly as a sign to allow her to continue her story.

"Have you not drunk yourself to sleep yet Damon? Me and Elena are attempting to listen to Amelia's story if you don't mind?" Stefan stated, ushering Damon to remove himself from the room.

"…no chance. I am listening Amelia, don't you worry your little cotton socks." Damon said childishly, smiling at Amelia.

"…As I was saying… I spoke to Klaus for ages at the local park…"

"…how very paedophilic…"Damon interjected, yet again.

"Damon, seriously?" Stefan angrily snarled, getting up off the chair, and facing Damon.

"Damon, stop it now, please?" Elena kindly whined, turning her head away from Damon.

"Fine, I'll leave you guys to listen to all this crap. Goodbye Amelia." Damon smirked, strutting out of the room with his bottle of bourbon and his glass.

"Sorry about that Amelia, please continue." Stefan smiled.

"Okay. Well, Klaus asked me whether I would kill a person; of course I said no, I couldn't do that. But then he began to put these thoughts into my head about Elise, and how she was abusive and that I didn't have to put up with it and that I should attempt to leave her and come and travel with him."

"Did you… were you…in love…?" Elena muttered, nervously.

"Was I in love in with Klaus? No. He just made me happy, like a big brother. For the 8 months I knew him, it felt like I wasn't alone in the world…When you get that feeling that one person can make you feel alive… if you know what I mean." Amelia asked Elena.

"Yeah, I know what you mean." As she said this, she looked at Stefan, who had also turned to look at her. Elena smiled at him, and then Stefan's smile followed. They were remembering the times when they were together and felt safe in each other's arms.

"Anyway, I was all set to leave Elise's, when she found out about it. She shouted at me…"

~"What do you think you're doing?" she bellowed, standing in front of the front door. She wasn't allowing me to leave, so I shouted back, telling her how abusive she was, and that she never showed me care or love.

"Let me leave, NOW!" I screamed as the anger was just boiling up inside, I could feel my fists clenching and my voice box was ready to scream once more. I don't know what came over me, but when she shouted "NO!" I couldn't cope and I went off the rails, I began to smash pots and pans onto the floor from the kitchen, I ran into the lounge and smashed all of the wedding photos of Elise and her husband against the walls, I smashed a wooden table up which was apparently years old, pointed bits were sticking up out of it, I had ruined it completely, I then threw a lamp through the front window, but then suddenly… I turned around to see Elise with a shotgun aimed straight at me. I didn't know what to do, my anger had cooled down, I was ready to just apologise, but she wouldn't back down. All I remember her saying was:

"I mustn't fail." And then she walked closer to me. I told her to calm down, and that she couldn't hurt me but all she replied with was:

"I mustn't fail" Which is when she shot at me! The bullet went straight into my arm, thankfully not into my heart, but my arm felt numb and there was no feeling in it. Until 5 seconds later when I was in so much pain, my arm was continuously pulsing, it was as if I could feel every beat of blood pumping through my veins. I was terrified, especially now because she was coming at me with her fists, attempting to punch me in the head! At one point she did manage to punch me, right in the nose. I wailed loudly, but she wouldn't stop. ~

"I didn't know what to do. What could I have done? The next time she went to punch me, I dodged her and then forcefully pushed her backwards towards the broken table; I just wanted to get her away from me so I could leave. That's all I wanted…she fell straight onto a sharp piece of snapped wood from the broken table. It went straight through her torso." Amelia sniffled, drops falling from her brown eyes; they were glistening now because of the tears.

"Oh. I am so sorry that that happened to you Amelia." Elena quietly cried.

"I'm sorry too. No 16 year old should go through that." Stefan said holding Amelia's hand.

"Anyway…" Amelia said, poising herself, "…so that happened. I cried and held Elise's hand, I didn't move her. She just laid there, arched, with this wooden pole pushed all the way through her, dead. I mean, she was horrible, she didn't care for me, but she didn't deserve that. She gave me a roof over my head and food in my stomach. I should have been more grateful…. Klaus compelled her to attempt to kill me, to make me angry, and he got what he wanted. I turned that very day." Amelia announced.

"You did?" Elena inquisitively asked. Amelia stood up and walked to the window; she sighed and closed her eyes.

"Don't you just love the sunlight, it's so refreshing." Amelia stated. Stefan and Elena looked at each other, confused by the way Amelia was acting.

"So, when did Klaus turn you into a vampire?" Stefan asked her, to move back onto the subject of Amelia.

"…that very same day as well. I turned into a werewolf in the evening after I had ran away to the woods, because I gathered what was happening after the story Elise told me. I knew it was time for me to turn into a wolf. It was the most painful experience I ever had to go through, every bone in my body was so fragile and weak, and they just snapped, one by one. First my wrists, then my ankles, then my ribs…every last bloody bone." Amelia informed, angrily.

"And Klaus had found you?" Elena muttered, seeming rather emotional about Amelia's life story.

"Yes. After I had transformed and was back to myself… he came and found me lying in the middle of the woods, he brought me a blanket and some clothes, and then we found an area of the woods where we could stay the night. Klaus created a fire so I could stay warm and brought some sandwiches for me. Cheese and onion." Amelia finished, turning towards Stefan and Elena now

"Okay, cheese and onion sandwiches…" Stefan laughed.

"You shouldn't laugh, you should always remember the small details… they could be the most important details you'll ever need to know." Amelia answered seriously; she walked back over to the chair, and sat down.

"What next?" Elena asked, intrigued.

"What next? Well, to cut a long story short, Klaus fed me his blood mixed with some doppelganger blood…" Amelia looked at Elena, "…and then broke my neck..." She stopped; Stefan looked at her, with sympathy and went over to sit beside her. He put his arm around her, and she leant on his shoulder. Elena looked at the two, with compassion and smiled; this reminded her of how compassionate Stefan always was.

"… I don't know why I get like this. I've been through it; I need to get over it." Amelia stated, wiping her eyes with her hand.

"It's not easy to get over something like that, especially dying Amelia." Elena empathised, "…I know how you feel."

"I know you do; I've felt every small detail to every large experience you've been put through. I feel every segment of pain, I sense every dying body, I understand each relationship and romance… being a protector is like being a blind you. It's empathising with you; it's sensing and feeling what you go through without seeing it. And you'd think you'd get used to it after having 17 years of it… you know, even as a baby I can remember you falling over and I'd cry too because I feel every last bit of pain you experience Elena. When you drowned, I choked. When you stabbed yourself, I had a hole in my stomach same as you. We are linked." Amelia explained, sitting upwards, releasing her head from Stefan's shoulder. Elena staggered a little.

"Every single bit of pain?" Elena said, with tearful eyes.

"Every single bit." Amelia replied, sighing in the process, "…anyway, I'll continue the story?" she questioned, Elena and Stefan nodding slightly, "…After I had died, I lusted for blood. Klaus brought me a girl to drink blood from. I was hesitant, until I smelt it. I imagined the taste lingering on the edge of my taste buds, and then it happened; I drank the blood. I couldn't stop… I killed her."

"That happens usually doesn't it Stefan, the first taste of blood from the human vein causes a vampire to accidentally kill a person, sometimes, so there was nothing to worry about, right Stefan?" Elena asked Stefan reassuringly.

"Sometimes... what did you do afterwards?" Stefan asked inquisitively.

"I drank the blood of 10 more people… killing them all in the process. I ripped off every single head of my victims… and then I felt guilty, so I put them back together again." Amelia replied, bluntly.

"You're a ripper." Stefan stated, also bluntly. Elena looked at Amelia and Stefan and lowered her head; rippers were deadly, Elena new this all too well. Amelia nodded at Stefan's comment, "…can you control it?" Stefan asked, understandingly.

"On some level, yes, I can't control the lust for human blood though, that's always there. But I drink animal blood, so I don't feel the need to drink human blood. I'm strong. I cope" Amelia replied. Stefan nodded and pulled a small smile.

"When I finished drinking my victims dry… I stopped, and wondered what I was and why Klaus had turned me into the monster that would rip open 11 innocent people's necks…" Amelia said, her eyes streaming-she had not ran out of tears, "…every sense was bigger and stronger, I could literally hear the fly on the wall, breathing! I could see all around me, as if I was looking through a magnified glass. I could feel the air crashing against my cheeks. And then I threw myself onto the floor and burst into tears. I attempted to scrub the innocent humans' blood off of my hands, but it just wouldn't go. My hands were stained with the blood of 12 innocent people, including Elise…." Amelia described, emotionally.

"That's because when you're a vampire, everything is magnified. Your emotions were heightened because you were upset. So when you are upset, you literally feel that you are the worst person in the world, which leads to depression, then suicidal thoughts….It happens to the best of us. It wasn't your fault. Klaus was the one who attempted to create you into a monster, but look at you now, that didn't happen, did it? You're here telling us how you are here to protect Elena…" Stefan stated, and then he held Amelia's face in his palms and said: "You're a good person Amelia. Just believe it." Then he wiped her tears which had begun to drop when she spoke about the innocent people she had killed. Elena smiled sympathetically and passed Amelia a tissue.

"Thank you... After all that had happened, I went to speak to Klaus. He told me how I was amazing, and that I was now a hybrid. He said he'd need me one day, so stay local. I didn't understand him at the time, but I read up about Hybrids..."

"Wait a minute, are you not sired to Klaus?" Stefan asked, confused.

"No, that's what I'm saying! He must have thought that I was just an original hybrid. But he evidently didn't realise that I was a witch aswell, and a witch cannot be sired." Amelia happily stated. Elena scratched her head,

"…so wait. Klaus told you to stay local, as in, in England because he thought that you were sired to him, so you'd always come back to him. But because you're also a witch, you cannot be sired, so you've come to America, where Klaus has just left because he says there's nothing left here for him…" Elena began, her eyes wide,

"Klaus has gone back to England for you Amelia!" Stefan finished, shocked.

Both Elena and Stefan looked at each other, anxiously.

"Which means Klaus we'll be looking for you, and when he finds out you're not in England…" Elena continued,

"…he'll come back to America, your birthplace." Stefan finished once again, more worried than ever.

"Wait I don't understand. Klaus came over here to make more hybrids, why would there be nothing left for him?" Amelia asked, confused.

"…because you're his last Hybrid Amelia." Damon said entering the room.


	3. Many Truths

The room was enveloped with silence. Nobody moved a muscle, not even Damon who had released the last statement which was the reason why Stefan, Elena and Amelia were sustained in silence. Stefan glanced at Amelia who was just positioned on the sofa, staring straight ahead of her, through the middle of Elena and Stefan sitting opposite. Elena brought her hand to her cheek and rubbed it silently, you could see how awkward she felt within the silence. Damon stood leaning against the door frame, right hand in his trouser pocket and the other held beside him, with a large burgundy book clutched in his left hand. Amelia finally reacted and swiftly stood up; facing Damon… then she broke the silence:

"…what do you mean…? 'I'm his last hybrid'…What do you mean Damon?" she spoke sternly, her voice broken a little, infused with a dose of inquisitiveness.

"I meant what I said Amelia. It's true; you are the last of Klaus' hybrids." Damon replied, with no worry in his voice or care as it seemed.

"…How?" Amelia whispered, turning a little away from Damon, looking at the floor below.

"It kind of went like this…the Hybrids decided they wanted to be freed from Klaus, so they did that, then they organised a rebellion against him, then Klaus found out and decided to kill them all. Every last Hybrid…oh, there's still Tyler, but he's gone off somewhere, something about taking a break from _'life'_. Other than him, every last hybrid. Oh then again, there's you…but wait, you're not a hybrid, you are a _hybrid witch_. Biggg difference." Damon said, with a careless look on his face, his mouth was very nearly in a smiling position, Elena responded to this in a distraught way,

"What the hell are you playing at Damon?" she said, angrily getting up from the seat.

"I'm just telling our new _friend_ here the truth Elena, why would you rather me tell her that there are plenty of hybrids in mystic falls, roaming around freely with pretty little fairies flying around their heads like a nice little fairytale? Or that Klaus won't be looking for her because it's not like she's possibly the only Hybrid witch ever to walk this planet…" Damon began stating.

"…But Klaus doesn't know she's a witch, does he?" Stefan interjected, questioning Damon's last statement.

"Oh come on brother, you don't think Klaus knows about her? You know Klaus; he will stop at nothing to know every little detail about something he wants, and from what I've heard, he wants you Amelia. So it is most definitely stupid to say that he doesn't know that she is a witch too Stefan!" Damon replied, actually making sense. Why would Klaus possibly be going back to England just to get another hybrid? He had already killed a dozen of them, so why would he find the need to collect one more? Elena and Stefan looked at Damon. They knew he was talking sense, but they just didn't want to admit it to his face. Amelia was still staring at the floor, when the other three turned to stare at her.

"…I need some air." Amelia stated, strutting past Damon quickly through the front door. Elena gasped, about to say something to Amelia, but she had left too quickly.

"I'll go talk to her." Elena quietly exclaimed. Stefan nodded at Elena as she turned to follow Amelia.

"Goodbye Damon." Stefan finished as he got up to leave the room. As he brushed past Damon, his brother grabbed his arm and said:

"No. You stay here. I need to tell you what I've found out." Damon gently claimed as he released Stefan's arm.

"Wait, what are you talking about?" Stefan began, lowering his eyebrows, and moistening his lips in a confused type manner.

"I'm talking about what I found in here." Damon replied, waving the burgundy book in his hand, above his head. Stefan raised his eyebrows and sat back down. Damon followed and sat opposite Stefan opening the book to a particular page.

"Now you know I'm not the research type… I left all that stuff to Alaric… but I've been digging a bit…." Damon stated, tracing the page with his left index finger.

"Wait. _You've_ been digging?" Stefan asked, smirking a little.

"Yes Stefan. Men snoop too for your information. I'm sure you've done it many times before." Damon announced, very nearly blushing red; he was already blushing a light pink.

"Okay. I get it. Anyway, what have you found out about Amelia?" Stefan said, distinctively.

"Not Amelia Stefan. Vampires with powers…werewolves with powers…it is totally possible. It's in this book…theories about the lycanthrope having witch powers and how thousands of years ago, many of them performed some sort of spell to reduce the moon's shape… to prevent a full moon occurring… so they wouldn't have to turn anymore!" Damon asserted as Stefan processed this new-found knowledge Damon was educating him on, "…anyway, some witches found out about what they were doing and placed a curse on them which would prevent any werewolf witches from performing spells ever again… they would lose their powers for eternity. Every werewolf who is meant to be born with powers just can't use them or just… kind of loses them the day they are born. So all this crap about balancing nature… it's not true Stefan. Werewolves can have powers… well they used to be able to." Damon stated with wide eyes.

"…So if a werewolf can have powers, what about a vampire?" Stefan asked Damon, baffled.

"Same goes for vampires. It says here that the vampires with magical powers also attempted to perform a spell whereby the sun wouldn't come up regularly, so they could stay outside for longer periods of times to farm and hunt. But again the witches found out and the vampires were also subjected to an eternal curse preventing them from ever using magic ever again. Stupid really, because I bet they didn't know they would be making daylight rings for the vampires a few years later. Anyway, we know that a vampire isn't born a vampire, it becomes one, but it says here that years ago witches who became vampires would still keep their magic, but now that's not the case. I mean, look at Bonnie's mum." Damon continued, closing the book shut.

"…Wait. What does it say about hybrid witches?" Stefan asked as Damon finished closing the book

"Well that's exactly it. It doesn't say anything about hybrid witches." Damon ended, placing the book on the table in front of him.

"So what are you saying Damon?" Stefan asked sitting backwards.

"I'm saying that this Amelia girl may not be telling us the entire truth…" Damon replied, tapping the book's cover, "Not only is there a curse put in place so no supernatural being except natural witches can have powers now, Amelia also claims she's a hybrid with magic. None of which is stated in this book,_ 'Supernatural entities and magic.' _This means it's not possible Stefan!"

"Look Damon, this book is what, like 200 years old, how do you know that new supernatural entities haven't originated or that hybrid witches just haven't been noted down in history books yet? You're ruling out all the possibilities." Stefan began. He stood up then, clasping his hands together.

"I'm not going to rule out the fact that she's probably lying to us, just because you've got a little crush on her." Damon claimed, standing up too.

"What the hell are you taking about Damon?" Stefan queried.

"Oh, I think you know brother. I mean you couldn't stop staring at her when you first came in, and then you noticed she had changed clothes, I mean come on…" Damon insinuated, squinting his eyes and pulling a 'just admit it' smirk.

"What? I noticed she had changed her clothes because she was wearing jeans before… and anyway I was only staring because she could have been anybody Damon. I was ensuring she wasn't some psycho killer out to hurt Elena…or you." Stefan replied, walking over to the small table and pouring himself some bourbon.

"I thought you weren't judgy? Now you are insinuating that you were stereotyping the girl as a _cold blooded murderer_ before she even spoke to you?" Damon smirked picking the burgundy book up into his hands.

"Oh, shut up Damon. Besides, we have a bigger problem on our hands. We need to find out more about _Amelia_." Stefan finished, drinking his glass of bourbon.

"One step ahead of you brother!" Damon said smiling, as he took the book and began walking through towards the staircase.

"Wait, where are you going?" Stefan asked, confused of the direction Damon was going.

"First step to finding out more about this girl… rummage through that _lovely _travel bag she brought with her and took upstairs." Damon answered, happily.

"What, the red one? You can't just go looking through personal property Damon." Stefan reacted, a little annoyed.

"Woah, you even took notice of her travel bag. Awww, you know so much about her already… what she wears, that she likes flowers, possibly what her favourite colour is…except, you don't know what she's doing here, whether she's a lying sociopath and whether she's out to kill us all. Well let me find out those small little details for you and you can go and check on Elena…. You know, just in case your crush hasn't already ripped her head off." Damon finished, already beginning his way up the stairs.

Stefan stood in the same spot for a couple seconds staring bewilderingly into space, then placed his empty glass down and walked towards the front door. As he was about to open it, he stood silently and held his ear towards the door, then listened through the door to see if he could hear Elena and Amelia talking. Stefan could hear them both clearly conversing. They sounded as if they were lower down, sitting on the front step possibly. They were talking about Klaus, and how Amelia felt so alone:

"…I just felt so isolated and afraid of being alone for the rest of my life… I know it sounds stupid, I mean I'm only 17…I should have had my whole life ahead of me Elena, but now, I'm this…this…this…" Amelia was exclaiming.

"…monster? Look Amelia. You know I know exactly what you're going through. I mean, when I first became a vampire, I hated myself. The fact that all I could think of or care about was blood…and even worse, drinking it from an innocent person's veins. And I hated myself. Completely. I was sick of wanting blood continuously, even when I had already fed, I just felt like I needed more, like that was the only thing that would ever make me content again. But I was wrong, because you can choose to be the ripper, choose to turn off your emotions, and only care about blood. Or you can be that good vampire who helps others and drinks from boring blood bags …" Elena began, Amelia laughing at the blood bag comment, "…but at least you're not hurting a person. And that's what it's about, right? Not hurting people, not hurting those close to you. Keeping that human part of you alive." Elena finished. Stefan was taken aback by what Elena had said; it made him smile, as she had once reminded him when he was at his worst, what life was all about.

"You're right. Why should allow this part of me to be the worst? I can be a good vampire; I've just got to take time to work at it." Amelia replied with, sounding chirpier.

"Agreed? We're going to help you control this ripper side of you. Stefan managed to control it, and so did Damon at one time. And even me, in small doses. So you can do it too." Elena replied. Stefan thought she sounded very sincere and really did want to help Amelia with her problems.

"Anyway, what's your deal with the Salvatore brothers?" Amelia quietly joked.

"What do you mean?" Elena asked, sounding embarrassed.

"Just… well, you used to be with Stefan right? And now you're with Damon? So why? Why Stefan then? Why Damon now?" Amelia inquisitively asked.

"Wow, a lot of questions to answer…" Elena laughed nervously. Stefan listened more closely to this subject as he too was interested in what Elena had to say; perhaps she would say something differently to Amelia than she did to him.

"Sorry. I was just… the thing is, I feel everything you do. Being your protector, it just makes me feel more closely to certain people who you are close to. And for some strange reason, I feel closer to Stefan than I do to Damon. Which isn't right… because…well… you're with Damon. So surely I should feel closer to Damon…"Amelia began, becoming more nervous. She didn't want Elena to react negatively to her questions and statements.

"I…I…I honestly don't have an answer for that. Amelia I've been in love with two people for a very long time now, and I'm sorry but I can't just stop being in love with one person because I'm with another." Elena replied, more agitated now. Stefan continued to listen in. He lingered onto the words 'I can't just stop being in love with one person because I'm with another…' because this meant that Elena was still in love with him, as well as Damon. He detested the fact that he allowed her to fall in love with his brother, but there was nothing he could do about it but wait for Elena to realise that she truly loved him.

"I didn't mean it in a rude way Elena. I just meant how is it I feel more strongly for Stefan than I do or Damon." Amelia continued wanting to know the answer.

"You feel everything I do. You should know." Elena finished as Stefan heard her getting up, she was about the open the door, Stefan swiftly moved to the centre of the living room and looked away from the front door. Elena entered through the front door, Amelia followed with a saddening look upon her face due to Elena's behaviour towards her. Stefan pretended he had only just heard Elena entering the house, so he turned around and looked slightly shocked.

"Hey Elena… Amelia. Wondered where you'd got to." Stefan lied, looking rather honest.

"Yeah, we just had a little chat. But Amelia's okay now and she's ready to confront her problems and fears. She's ready to face Klaus if she has to." Elena smiled, looking at Amelia. Amelia nodded in agreement, and then began to walk through the room, towards the staircase.

"Wait! Amelia. Erm, there's something I need to talk to you about. It's about…erm, your birth parents. Where did they live?" Stefan asked swiftly to prevent Amelia from going upstairs, in case Damon was still 'rummaging' through her bag.

"…they lived in Ohio…" Amelia replied, shiftily. It was as if she was hiding the truth of where her parents really lived. She turned and began to walk towards the stairs, planting her right foot onto the first step. Stefan looked on, as Amelia continued her way up the stairs; he took a deep breath and hoped that Damon had finished looking through Amelia's belongings, also hoping he had found some interesting facts about the girl.

"What's wrong with you Stefan? You look like you've seen a ghost!" Elena claimed as Stefan looked on at Amelia nervously, as she neared the top of the staircase.

"What? I'm fine, just a little tired that's all; I should be fine in a minute." Stefan replied, turning as pale as the moon. All that was hammering in his mind is whether Amelia would catch Damon or not. He decided to follow Amelia up the stairs, leaving Elena downstairs in the living room, confused.

"Why are you following?" Amelia asked, baffled, but smirking a little.

"I was just attempting to find out more about you, like what do you do as a protector?" Stefan lied, looking over Amelia's shoulder at the corridor behind her, filled with many entrances to many rooms, hoping Damon wasn't in the one where Amelia was headed.

"As a protector, I can sense when Elena is in trouble." Amelia replied, turning to walk down the corridor, Stefan following behind anxiously. Amelia continued to baffle about her protecting duties and how she was an important part of Elena's development as a vampire, or something along those lines (Stefan wasn't really taking any notice as he was crossing his fingers at each door Amelia walked past, hoping she wouldn't enter them). She stopped outside the 4th door on the left cautiously and opened the door slightly-enough for a person to slide through. Stefan could hear movement in the room, which meant Amelia could hear this as well. Stefan attempted to find the quickest and easiest way to distract Amelia from entering the room.

"…I just want to try something!" he said quickly as he pushed Amelia against the wall beside the door, held her neck with his right hand and pressed his lips against hers. Stefan then continued to kiss Amelia, running his hands through her long dark silky waves. He began to kiss her more passionately. Amelia was taken aback at first instance, however then relaxed and kissed Stefan back. Whilst this was occurring, Damon appeared and swiftly abandoned his mission, sliding through the door covertly. He passed Stefan and Amelia kissing and disappeared. Stefan had already realised Damon had gone, but he continued to kiss Amelia, who had forgotten all about the movement in her room and was concentrating on this particular moment.

Stefan couldn't imagine kissing anybody else but Elena before this specific moment; he believed that he would never have feelings for another girl other than Elena, but somehow he couldn't stop kissing Amelia. He was feeling something for her, something he couldn't describe or explain, just something. Eventually they both pulled away from one another. Amelia gasped and Stefan breathed deeply. For a moment nobody said a word, until Amelia broke the silence:

"…well that was…"

"…weird…" Stefan stated with a bewildering look on his face, finishing Amelia's sentence.

"…Interesting…. You could have found a million other ways to distract me, whilst Damon was looking through my bag…but you chose this one." Amelia continued, seeming relaxed, still leaning against the wall. Stefan looked at Amelia in surprise,

"Wait! You knew?!" Stefan exclaimed, inquisitively.

"Of course I did. I'm a hybrid witch Stefan, which means my hearing is impeccably better than yours…and I'm not stupid, you wouldn't just kiss me like that…not when you are still in love with Elena." Amelia sighed, stating the truth. She began to walk away from Stefan, towards the stairs.

"Where are you going?" Stefan asked, seeing the attempted covered hurt on Amelia's face, now feeling rather guilty. Amelia took a deep broken breath, and replied:

"To kill your brother."


	4. Roles Reversed

"Wait! What?" Stefan shouted after Amelia, who had already headed down the staircase. Amelia wouldn't turn around to look at Stefan, she just continued to walk, until Stefan grabbed her arm and pulled backwards up the stairs, "…what are you doing?" Stefan asked distressingly.

"Get off me now!" Amelia exclaimed, tugging away from Stefan's grab. She again carried on walking down the stairs, Stefan following with a concerning look upon his pale face. Amelia reached the bottom stair, and stared towards the door to the living room, as if she was ready to pounce onto her prey.

"Just think about it Amelia. You're not a killer. You're not going to kill my brother." Stefan quietly stated, standing behind Amelia.

"How do you know what I am? Perhaps you should be suspicious of who I am? Maybe I am here to kill Elena?" Amelia replied, her eyes daggering.

"Damon may believe that, but I don't. I know you're not a killer and I know you're not going to kill my brother." Stefan repeated, putting his right hand on Amelia's shoulder. She reacted and moved forward onto the solid ground. She walked towards the living room and stood in the door frame. Stefan moved forwards and again stood behind her. Fortunately Damon wasn't there, neither was Elena.

"He's gone anyway." Amelia whispered. She then went over to the middle of the room and looked towards the window; the sun shining heavily through, lightly heating her tanned skin.

Stefan paused for a moment and walked over to Amelia.

"Who gave you your daylight ring?" he questioned, quietly.

"…Klaus." Amelia answered, sensitively, continuously staring through the sun rayed widow, "…it was something he left for me after my transition, before he left. He just told me to wear it if I didn't want to 'go up in flames'" Amelia stated, as tears began to slowly drop from her eyes. Stefan dropped his head, not knowing what to say.

"…If the roles were reversed, Damon would kill me." Amelia revealed, still gazing through the window.

"What do you mean?" Stefan asked, bewildered at this accusation.

"Damon would kill me if I was him and he was me. If he was Elena's protector, and I was attempting to get rid of him, he would kill me." Amelia replied, seriously.

"Why would he kill you?" Stefan asked, his hands placed in his jean pockets.

"Don't you get it? Protectors have no choice but to protect the person they are destined to protect. Almost like a sire bond…only difference is, that if Elena dies… I die." Amelia claimed, now turning away from the window to look at Stefan. Her shadow was now enlarged in front of her. Stefan moved closer to her, looking confounded,

"What do you mean you die? Are you saying it as if you'd feel like you've let her down so you metaphorically die? Or literally…" Stefan asked, anxiously.

"Literally Stefan…which is another reason why I've got to work hard at protecting Elena, because my life is literally in her hands!" Amelia replied sternly, "…so if people like Damon get in my way, and attempt to force me out of Mystic Falls away from Elena, I can't protect her! And if he brainwashes Elena into thinking I'm the bad guy, then I can's protect her! Do you see why I can't let that happen now?" Amelia questioned Stefan, her hands wavering at him.

"Okay. Fine. I understand you have to protect Elena otherwise you die, but that doesn't mean you have to kill Damon! You just need to get him to understand you. Tell him everything he needs to know… I know he has his reservations about you, but all he needs is for you to tell him the truth Amelia." Stefan stated rather briskly, his brows lowered once again.

"…tell him the truth about what Stefan? There's nothing else to tell. Nothing else which he or anybody else needs to know. If Klaus is coming back to Mystic Falls then Elena needs to be protected…" Amelia said turning back around to face the window.

"Wait…. I thought it was you he'd be after?" Stefan asked inquisitively, now seeming suspicious.

"…I don't know what he wants if I've got to be honest Stefan…" Amelia began, nervously, "…look, Klaus is not the worst out there. There are plenty other murderous, evil people out there who would be fond of a little doppelganger blood. My grandmother told me I needed to come to Mystic Falls and protect Elena Gilbert. She told me about Damon…and you. I mean, I already knew a lot about Elena because I had had dreams and nightmares about her… I was her in the dreams. That's why I knew a lot about her and her life. Elena isn't like a 'job' to me, when I first met her; I knew that we had this connection. A protector and her or his protectee have a long-lasting bond, which cannot be broken unless the prophecy has been fulfilled." Amelia finished. She turned to see Stefan's reaction, who was staring into space.

"…what prophecy?" Stefan asked, persistently.

"…the prophecy of the protector and the protectee….when a protector has fulfilled its destiny, the bond breaks, and the protector is free from being forced to protect the protectee." Amelia continued, quietly, gazing out of the window once more.

"…and how do you break the bond? How do you fulfil your destiny?" Stefan said, moving closer to Amelia, who was at the window.

"I must do a deed which proves my undying protection for Elena. I must protect her from something significant and then the bond will be broken."

"Well that sounds pretty simple. We'll just push Elena off the edge of a cliff and you can catch her and save her." Stefan replied, jokingly.

"Stefan the fates aren't stupid, and neither are the witches. They know when the final moment of protection is fro each protector…it will happen when it will happen. I've just got to ensure I am there for Elena at every life threatening moment, because one of those moments may be when the bond can be broken." Amelia signed heavily. Stefan repeated what Amelia had said in his head 'because one of those moments may be when the bond can be broken…'

"Wait, so you're only protecting her, so that you can be free?" Stefan said sourly.

"What? No Stefan. All of that's great, I mean I won't have to watch Elena's back for the rest of her life, my life won't be hanging off the end of a thread, I'll be able to live my life…" Amelia exclaimed. "But it's much more than that, I want to be able to make the choice whether I'm ready to die or not for another person…you wouldn't understand." She whispered, sadly. Stefan paused for a moment, sympathetically. He had to keep reminding himself Amelia was only 17; she had only lived 17 years of her life. The age Stefan was when he was turned into a vampire by Katherine.

"I'm sorry. I know it must be hard for you, your life being so closely connected to Elena's." Stefan stated quietly.

"…I just… I want to live my long life without worrying about being hunted down by Klaus or worrying about Elena's life. I've never truly had stability… a family. I mean being given away by your birth mum, and then accidentally killing the only mum you had… it's hard Stefan." Amelia expressed, turning to gaze at Stefan's eyes.

Stefan gently held Amelia's hands and said:

"I know. I accidentally killed my dad when I was your age. He was attempting to kill me, he was coming at me when I pushed him, and he kind of fell on the wooden stake he was trying to kill me with… although he wanted me dead, I still regret it. I've lived with the guilt for more than 150 years, and I'm sure I'll live with it for many more years to come…" Stefan explained, quietly,

"…is this meant to make me feel any better?" Amelia smiled.

"What I'm trying to say, is that I understand what you are going through Amelia." Stefan replied, still holding Amelia's hands. She looked down to see her hands enclosed in his; this made me smile a little. She looked up at Stefan who was also looking at their hands, then looked up to pull a smile also.

"Anyway, just know that you can tell me anything you want. I know we've only just met, but you can trust me. I promise." Stefan stated, seriously. He then gently released Amelia's hands and went over to the small table to pour himself a glass of bourbon and began drinking some of it. Amelia moved over to Stefan, staring at the bourbon bottle.

"You and Damon drink a hell of a lot of that stuff. It's no wonder you're both so weird." Amelia grinned, childlike.

"Don't you laugh at me, besides, what do you mean 'weird', I'm not weird!" Stefan replied, acting hurt then smiling. He moved closer to Amelia slowly.

"Yes you are! You are most definitely weird Stefan Salvatore." Amelia jeered.

"Hey, hey, hey… Damon's weird I'll admit that, but me…no." Stefan laughed, shaking his head; he then shook the liquid in his glass around a little, then took another sip, "…helps with the cravings." He stated, quietly. Amelia walked even closer to Stefan, so that they were at arms length. She then took the glass from his hand and took the last sip. "…I wasn't finished with that." Stefan whispered.

"Sorry, but really, what can you do?" Amelia teased, holding the glass above Stefan's head, pretending to pour the empty contents onto Stefan's head. He looked up at her arm holding the glass and took hold of her wrist in his hand, then brought her arm down lightly. Stefan then took the glass out of her hand and placed it on the small table.

"Do you think that an individual can like two people at the same time?" Stefan asked Amelia as he finished placing the glass down.

"I don't know. I suppose so… but there's always one which they love more. One they love, and then one they are in love with." Amelia replied quietly, walking over towards a gramophone in the corner of the room.

"Hmm. I guess that's logic." Stefan spoke, placing his hands in his trouser pockets.

"You guess that's logic? It is logic. It isn't possible to be _in _love with more than one person Stefan… it's just not possible; but you could love as many people as you wanted, and have the strongest feelings for them. But none of them will ever be the one you are destined to be with at the time. The one who you are _in_ love with is the one…" Amelia continued. She began running her finger along the edges of the gramophone. It was a light shade of brown with golden rims, and the horn was a shiny gold which Amelia could see her reflection in. It was magnificent in Amelia's eyes. Stefan walked slowly over to where Amelia and the gramophone were.

"Got that a few years back. Apparently made in the 19th century." Stefan claimed as he was closer to it. He also ran his fingers along the golden rim.

"It's beautiful." Amelia replied quietly, still admiring it, "…does it work?" she asked Stefan, with big brown eyes.

"I'll show you." Stefan delicately placed a record onto the gramophone and put the needle on top of it gently. A classical tune began to play. Amelia was delighted and smiled happily; Stefan noticed this which also made him smile.

"Would you like to dance?" Stefan asked, holding out his hand in front of Amelia.

"…It would be an honour." Amelia nodded, as she held his hand, as he led her central of the room. Stefan placed his right hand on Amelia's hip and held her right hand with his left. Amelia then put her left hand on his right shoulder, and they began to slow dance around the room.

"I've never danced properly before." Amelia whispered to Stefan.

"Never?" Stefan questioned, astonished.

"Well, I missed last year's school dance because of being on the run as I was a suspect in Elise's murder and everything… and before that; well I never really got invited. I kept myself to myself and kind of preferred it that way." Amelia replied sadly, but then smiled. She rested her head on Stefan's chest as they continued to dance.

"You're pretty good for a person who's never danced _properly _before." Stefan smiled, he cheek resting against Amelia's brown locks.

"I guess some things you pick up. And you know what they say: when you're dancing with an expert, you become one." Amelia grinned.

"Who said that?" Stefan asked, jokingly.

"I did." Amelia laughed, she then sighed deeply, "Truth is, there really is more to the story than I've told you."

"What do you mean?" Stefan asked, inquisitively, still dancing.

"…I'm not just here because I'm Elena's protector…" Amelia continued, becoming more nervous. Stefan stopped dancing and looked at Amelia concerning. He released her hand and his hand from her hip and paused.

"Why else would you be here?" Stefan asked, bewildered.

"…There's someone I know who lives here. Someone close to me."

"What are you talking about?" As soon as Stefan said this, Damon and Elena entered through the front door, Caroline and Bonnie in tow.

"Look my grams never said anything about hybrid witches. I didn't know they were possible, but maybe they…" Bonnie was beginning to state as she entered the living area with Damon, Elena and Caroline. She noticed Amelia standing next to Stefan.

"Is that music I can hear little brother?" Damon asked, staring at the gramophone, then at Stefan, then Amelia.

"Oh." Stefan said quickly as he rushed over to the gramophone to turn it off.

"Right. Is this her?" Caroline asked looking Amelia up and down.

"Yup." Damon confessed. "That's her."

"Look Damon, this is ridiculous." Elena interjected shaking her head.

"Elena, be quiet honey." Damon said sarcastically in a 'husband' voice.

Amelia was frozen on the spot whilst everybody but Stefan looked at her. She felt claustrophobic, and noticed they were blocking the only exit.

"Okay. Now Amelia, you should know how much I distrust you right now. I mean, do you blame me? I've never really been too fond of friends of Klaus…" Damon began.

"She's not his friend Damon." Stefan interrupted, sternly.

"…as I was saying, I don't really believe a word you're saying, so I wanted to ensure you're not some psycho killer. Which is why I've brought a few friends with me to make sure I'm correct." Damon finished, smirking as per usual.

"Damon, why do you have to put it like that?" Caroline asked, abruptly, "…look, we're looking out for Elena, so we just want to make sure you're a normal hybrid witch thing who doesn't want to hurt our best friend. Okay?" she finished, smiling kindly.

"Damon you're a dick." Stefan stated, "…Caroline I trust her." He continued, walking over to Caroline. She looked at him with disbelief. "…okay. Well do you trust me?" Stefan asked genuinely; Caroline nodded to state yes, "…so trust me when I say you can trust Amelia. She wont hurt Elena." He finished with a serious look. Amelia was still frozen, she didn't know what to do or say. She felt threatened; she felt scared…she felt vulnerable.

"Enough Stefan! Stop attempting to brainwash Caroline. She is hiding something, and I want to get to the bottom of it!" Damon interjected angrily. Stefan looked back at Amelia, who still hadn't moved a muscle.

"Look, I do believe she's keeping something from us… but she's not here to hurt any of us. I know that for sure." Stefan reassured.

"Oh and how do you know? Has she been confiding in you, telling you her dirty little secrets?" Damon facetiously asked. Stefan shook his head in annoyance and looked at Elena for guidance and help, but she didn't say anything.

"Elena, you spoke to Amelia before. You know she's a friend. Don't you?" Stefan asked Elena, who was standing furthest back from the commotion.

"Damon he's right. I trust Amelia is here to do what she says she's here for, to protect me." Elena stepped forward to claim. Bonnie gazed at Amelia who was still in a frozen position, staring at the ground.

"Are you okay?" Bonnie asked Amelia as she neared her. Amelia looked up swiftly at Bonnie, he face now as pale as it could be.

"I'm fine." She replied, seeming frightened.

"Caroline was right. We only came round to see for ourselves whether you are what you say you are… to ensure Elena's safety. I'm sure you'd do that for your friend wouldn't y…you look so familiar." Bonnie paused staring at Amelia. Everybody else moved closer to Bonnie and Amelia, looking confused.

"I do?" Amelia asked, concerned.

"Yeah…like I've seen you before… like I know you or something…" Bonnie quietly stated, looking at Amelia straight in the eyes. Amelia looked down at the floor, and then put a strand of her hair behind her ear delicately. She was shaking immensely.

"Look…I'd better go for a walk… especially whilst you're all judging me when I'm here to do you all a favour…" Amelia shakily stated as she was about to walk past the group to leave.

"You're not going anywhere!" Damon demanded, standing in front of the door.

"Please let me go. I'm not here to hurt Elena. I'm here to protect her! How many times do I have to repeat myself for god damn sake?" Amelia exclaimed, wanting to scream.

"Just let her go Damon." Stefan shouted, walking towards Damon.

"Stay back brother! This is between me and the hybrid witch." Damon stated, smarmily.

"Get out of my way." Amelia whispered, more calmly now. Caroline and Elena watched the confrontation from afar. Bonnie stood behind Stefan who was giving Amelia and Damon space whilst they argued a little.

"Why should I?" Damon said, childishly. Amelia put her head up and smiled at Damon, who smirked back at her. Suddenly, Amelia ran and snapped a piece of wood from the stair case banister, and stabbed Damon in the stomach with it. She turned back to look at Bonnie; then quickly escaped through the door.

"WAIT!" Bonnie shouted as Amelia disappeared.

"What's going on Bonnie?" Stefan shouted, distressingly, placing his hands on the back of his head. He then went over to help Damon who was bent on his knees, attempting to pull the wood out of his abdomen. Bonnie stared at the open door which Amelia had run through. She walked forwards and looked at Damon, Elena and Caroline, and then looked at Stefan, and breathed deeply,

"…She's my sister."


End file.
